Environmental

  • January 28, 2025

    Ariz. Judge Rejects Monument Challenge Due To Mining Ban

    A federal district court judge dismissed the Arizona State Legislature's challenge to former President Joe Biden's proclamation that established an Indigenous site in the Grand Canyon region as a national monument, saying the lawmakers failed to show how the order would harm the state's mining revenue-related interests.

  • January 28, 2025

    Senate Confirms Sean Duffy As DOT Secretary

    The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed former Wisconsin congressman Sean Duffy to be secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation.

  • January 28, 2025

    Cravath, Ropes & Gray Guide $2.4B Connecticut Water Deal

    Ropes & Gray LLP and Cravath Swaine & Moore LLP are leading a $2.4 billion deal that will see public energy company Eversource Energy sell subsidiary Aquarion Water Co., a public water supply and wastewater treatment company, to a unit of the state of Connecticut. 

  • January 28, 2025

    Environmental Group Of The Year: Baron & Budd

    Baron & Budd PC's attorneys over the past year secured billions of dollars from some of the world's biggest chemical companies to help reduce U.S. residents' exposure to toxic forever chemicals, work that took years to complete and that earned the firm a spot as one of the 2024 Law360 Environmental Groups of the Year.

  • January 28, 2025

    Judge Temporarily Halts Trump's Funding Freeze

    A D.C. federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked a Trump administration freeze on federal spending that was set to go into effect at 5 p.m., as a group of nearly two dozen attorneys general filed a separate case challenging what they described as an illegal and potentially catastrophic move.

  • January 28, 2025

    Calif. Bill Targets Oil Cos. For Climate Disaster Costs

    A Democratic lawmaker in California has introduced a bill aimed at improving insurance affordability in the state by allowing insurers and victims of natural disasters to pursue action against oil and gas companies for their role in fueling the climate crisis.

  • January 28, 2025

    NY Battery Startup Hits Ch. 11 With $136M Debt, Sale Plans

    Electric vehicle and renewable energy storage lithium-ion battery maker iM3NY filed for bankruptcy protection in Delaware, reporting around $136 million in debt after it wasn't able to drum up new funding for a battery production plant in New York.

  • January 27, 2025

    Anadarko Prevails In La. Kickback Defense Coverage Suit

    An environmental remediation company should defend and indemnify Anadarko Petroleum Corp. in a decade-old Louisiana kickback lawsuit, a Texas federal court judge has ruled.

  • January 27, 2025

    SoCal Edison To Leave Power Off Amid Eaton Fire Litigation

    Southern California Edison agreed Monday that it won't re-energize the power lines leading to the site of this month's deadly Eaton Fire for three more weeks, after plaintiffs' firm Edelson PC obtained a video that appears to show electrical sparks near the utility's equipment just before the fire began.

  • January 27, 2025

    Alaskan Co. Says Texas Firm Bungled Wash. Dam Scaffolding

    An Alaska Native-owned corporation is claiming a Texas firm supplied faulty underwater scaffolding designs that allegedly caused a structural collapse at a Pacific Northwest dam, exposing one of the corporation's subsidiaries to a demand of more than $1.4 million from the project's lead contractor.

  • January 27, 2025

    Enbridge Urges Line 5 Judge To Stall For Trump Admin Talks

    Enbridge Energy LP suggested Monday that a judge should "sit tight" rather than immediately rule on the merits of Michigan's lawsuit over its Line 5 pipeline to give the new U.S. presidential administration time to reach a resolution with Canada in the long-running dispute.

  • January 27, 2025

    Buddhist Group Wants Army Corps Everglades Plan Blocked

    A Buddhist community asked a Florida federal court to block construction on an Everglades restoration water retention project, arguing its concerns that the project will make its adjacent religious retreat center unusable have fallen on deaf ears at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

  • January 27, 2025

    Drone Co., Media Biz And Tire-Maker Announce SPAC Mergers

    Three overseas companies spanning industries from drones to fashion media and tire manufacturing announced plans on Monday to go public in the U.S. by merging with special purpose acquisition companies in deals projected to exceed $1.1 billion in value, guided by at least eight law firms.

  • January 27, 2025

    Fed Fisheries Seek Win In Tide Gate Fight Over Salmon

    The National Marine Fisheries Service has sought an early win in a suit by a county dike district challenging a U.S. government biological opinion that says a proposed tide gate project endangers salmon, telling a Washington federal judge that its ecological findings are reasonable.

  • January 27, 2025

    Norfolk Southern Can't Block Expert Testimony On Derailment

    A railcar inspector with over 45 years of experience is clear to testify against Norfolk Southern in litigation over the 2023 train derailment and chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio, a federal judge has ruled, rejecting the rail company's argument that he was not qualified to opine on certain train safety equipment.

  • January 27, 2025

    Holland & Hart Names New Senior Director Of Federal Affairs

    Holland & Hart LLP said Monday that it is bolstering its federal affairs team with the addition of a lobbyist who previously led the energy and environment practice at Cassidy & Associates.

  • January 27, 2025

    Arnold & Porter Adds Former Interior Dept. Energy Solicitor

    Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP has hired the former deputy solicitor for energy and mineral resources at the U.S. Department of the Interior, who is joining the firm's D.C. team as a counsel, the firm announced Monday.

  • January 27, 2025

    Pipeline Cos. Tell DC Circ. FERC Project Review Is Solid

    Companies behind a methane gas pipeline set to run between West Texas and Mexico are asking the D.C. Circuit to uphold the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's approval of the project, which is being challenged by environmentalists.

  • January 27, 2025

    High Court Passes On Solar Project Fine Levied Without Jury

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to review the Vermont Supreme Court's ruling that the state Public Utility Commission has the authority to bypass a jury trial and unilaterally impose civil penalties on solar energy project backers that allegedly cleared land without a permit.

  • January 24, 2025

    Syngenta, Chevron Headed For October Paraquat Bellwether

    An Illinois federal judge has set an October date for Syngenta and Chevron's first trial in a multidistrict litigation alleging that the pesticide paraquat causes Parkinson's disease, after the previous dismissal of trial-selected plaintiffs and the disqualification of an expert.

  • January 24, 2025

    Trump Admin Requests Justices Pause Three Energy Cases

    The Trump administration on Friday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to pause three cases so the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency can review Biden-era regulatory decisions that may alter the government's legal positions.

  • January 24, 2025

    Ga. Judge Gives Tentative OK To $1M PFAS Deal

    A federal judge gave preliminary approval to a $1 million settlement in a sprawling class action over forever chemicals allegedly released from a north Georgia textile plant, potentially ending the involvement of one of the half-dozen chemical companies in the suit.

  • January 24, 2025

    Trump Fires Inspectors General Without Notice

    President Donald Trump fired more than a dozen inspectors general Friday night, some of whom he had appointed, prompting concerns from both sides of the aisle that the president had not followed legal protocol.

  • January 24, 2025

    Enviros Want To Reopen Yellowstone Bison Suit

    An environmental group has asked a Montana federal court to reopen a case over the management of Native American tribes' bison hunting on public land near Yellowstone National Park, saying new analysis is needed to determine whether the United States' national mammal can now roam free.

  • January 24, 2025

    Trump Energy Order Disrupts High-Profile NEPA Cases

    One of President Donald Trump's first energy-related executive orders is unsettling closely watched litigation in the U.S. Supreme Court and D.C. Circuit regarding the executive branch's power to implement the National Environmental Policy Act.

Expert Analysis

  • Making The Pitch To Grow Your Company's Legal Team

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    In a compressed economy, convincing the C-suite to invest in additional legal talent can be a herculean task, but a convincing pitch — supported by metrics and cost analyses — may help in-house counsel justify the growth of their team, say Elizabeth Smith and Roger Garceau at Major Lindsey.

  • The Story Of 2024's Biggest Bank Regs, And Their Fate In 2025

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    U.S. federal bank regulators were very active in 2024 with initiatives ranging from antitrust and capital to proposals regarding controlling shareholders and incentive-based compensation, but many regulations face an uncertain future under the new administration, say attorneys at Latham.

  • Opinion

    1 Year After Rule 702 Changes, Courts Have Made Progress

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    In the year since amendments to the Federal Rules of Evidence went into effect, many federal judges have applied the new expert witness standard correctly, excluding unreliable testimony from their courts — but now state courts need to update their own rules accordingly, says Lee Mickus at Evans Fears.

  • An Underutilized Tool To Dismiss Meritless Claims In Texas

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    In Texas, special appearances provide a useful but often overlooked tool for out-of-state defendants to escape meritless claims early in litigation, thus limiting discovery and creating a pathway for immediate appellate review, say attorneys at Winston & Strawn.

  • When US Privilege Law Applies To Docs Made Outside The US

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    As globalization manifests itself in disputes over foreign-created documents, a California federal court’s recent trademark decision illustrates nuances of both U.S. privilege frameworks and foreign evidentiary protections that attorneys must increasingly bear in mind, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • Executive Orders That Could Affect Financial Services In 2025

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    The incoming Trump administration is likely to quickly revive or update a number of prior executive orders, and possibly issue new ones, that could affect financial services by emphasizing market discipline rather than regulatory initiatives to drive change in the industry, say attorneys at Davis Wright.

  • Green Projects Face States' Foreign Land Ownership Limits

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    As states impose restrictions and disclosure requirements around foreign investment in agricultural land — in some cases piggybacking on existing federal rules — renewable energy developers and investors must pay close attention to how the rules vary, says Daniel Fanning at Husch Blackwell.

  • What 2024 Trends In Marketing, Comms Hiring Mean For 2025

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    The state of hiring in legal industry marketing, business development and communications over the past 12 months was marked by a number of trends — from changes in the C-suite to lateral move challenges — providing clues for what’s to come in the year ahead, says Ben Curle at Ambition.

  • How Attorneys Can Master The Art Of Eye Contact At Trial

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    As a growing body of research confirms that eye contact facilitates communication and influences others, attorneys should follow a few pointers to maximize the power of eye contact during voir dire, witness preparation, direct examination and cross-examination, says trial consultant Noelle Nelson.

  • Series

    Group Running Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The combination of physical fitness and community connection derived from running with a group of business leaders has, among other things, helped me to stay grounded, improve my communication skills, and develop a deeper empathy for clients and colleagues, says Jessica Shpall Rosen at Greenwald Doherty.

  • Hawaii Climate Insurance Case Is Good News For Energy Cos.

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    The Hawaii Supreme Court's recent ruling in a dispute between an oil company and its insurers, holding that reckless conduct in the context of activities that can cause climate harms is covered by liability policies, will likely be viewed by energy companies as a positive development, say attorneys at Fenchurch Law.

  • Cos. Must Brace For New PFAS Regulations And Litigation

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    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently proposed adding over 100 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances to the Toxic Release Inventory — and with increasing scrutiny of PFAS from the states and the plaintiffs bar as well, companies should take steps to reduce risks in this area, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Opinion

    6 Changes I Would Make If I Ran A Law School

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    Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner identifies several key issues plaguing law schools and discusses potential solutions, such as opting out of the rankings game and mandating courses in basic writing skills.

  • Implications Of NY Climate Case For Generating Facilities

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    Regardless of how Greenidge Generation LLC v. New York Department of Environmental Conservation develops on remand, this decision has immediate repercussions for generating facilities seeking permit applications and renewals in New York, likely involving Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act considerations, say attorneys at Hodgson Russ.

  • Firms Still Have The Edge In Lateral Hiring, But Buyer Beware

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    Partner mobility data suggests that the third quarter of this year continued to be a buyer’s market, with the average candidate demanding less compensation for a larger book of business — but moving into the fourth quarter, firms should slow down their hiring process to minimize risks, say officers at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.

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